- Phumlani residents in Mfuleni say they have waited for water, electricity and toilets since 2019, despite memoranda to the City.
- They will vote on 4 November for the first party to deliver, while the City blames a wetland and Eskom.
Residents of Phumlani informal settlement in Mfuleni, Cape Town, say they will vote on 4 November for the first party that gives them one basic service. They have lived without water, electricity and toilets since they arrived in 2019.
Bathandwa Gali, a community leader, said residents have been writing to the City of Cape Town and handing over memoranda for all those years.
“We are still waiting to this day,” he said.
Residents pay R5 to R10 for fetched water and R10 to charge a phone. Connecting to nearby houses for electricity costs R350 to R400 or more.
“Most of our people are unemployed and depend on grants; we shouldn’t be paying money for services. Political parties have been making promises, and we are tired of empty promises. That’s why we made a decision that we will make a deal with any party that first gives us one of the basic services we need, and we will vote for them,” Gali said.
Nomsa Mzimela, 45, said residents have been voting, with nothing to show for it.
“Political parties came and made promises, and we voted for them, and they disappeared. When they want votes, they come back and make the same promises they made. This time we are doing things differently: services first and votes later,” she said.
Without toilets, residents relieve themselves in the bushes.
“What about our dignity? We struggle when there are heavy rains, and when it is too hot we are lucky not to be bitten by snakes while relieving ourselves. There’s no use in voting if we don’t see change after voting; it is a waste of time,” Mzimela said.
Gali said residents also asked their ward councillor for help. The councillor told them it is the City’s job to give services, and joins them when they march to the Civic Centre to deliver memoranda.
Ward 114 ANC councillor Mongezi Madikane said he has been trying to get services for residents.
“I joined the residents every time they marched for services, and we even went to the Provincial Legislature, but we didn’t get a response. That’s why we are now engaging with national officers for support,” Madikane said.
Zahid Badroodien, the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation, said Phumlani and Driftsands informal settlements fall within the Covid informal settlement area in Mfuleni.
“The settlements are situated on a wetland, which significantly constrains the provision of basic services, including taps and toilets. The Subcouncil Manager and Ward Councillor have been notified of the concerns and site constraints preventing the provision of these services across the entire Covid informal settlement area,” he said.
Xanthea Limberg, the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Energy, said Phumlani falls within an Eskom supply area.
She said the City is prohibited by law from supplying electricity or responding to electricity faults there, and only the National Energy Regulator of South Africa can change supply areas.
“The City is on record as having held talks with Eskom at the highest level, expressing our desire to take over Eskom-supplied areas. Eskom unfortunately walked away from these talks. The City is eager to re-engage Eskom on this topic and asks that it return to the talks it left in May 2024,” Limberg said.
